greetings!

Happy Valentines everyone! I have been here in Morocco for about a week and a half, and yesterday I finished my first week of classes. It's a pretty weird schedule, different than what I am used to. I have four classes right now; but only two a day, sometimes one. I have my Arabic course four days a week and my other courses one a day for three days a week. The classes, though, are 2.5- 3 hours long so I am pretty beat once they end. Arabic has been a challenge, but once I begin to recognize the alphabet it is pretty easy to piece together words, as they are put together with sounds rather than individual letters. Basically if you can pronounce a word you can read and write it.
My other classes have been switched around a bit as I tried to find ones better fitted to my studies. Tuesday I have Gender Studies and Artistic Expression in the Arab World and on Thursday I have Religion, Society and Politics as well as Arabic. Artistic Expression I feel will be a really interesting course, we are learning how culture is expressed through means of art when other means may not be accessible, especially to the uneducated in Morocco. We'll study things like weaving, folklore, clothing, as well as modern vessels such as cinema.
Today we went on our first excursion that the program has set up for us, a site called Volubilis. This ancient town was settled in the 3rd C. BC. by Romans, making it one of the most important Roman establishments in the North of Africa. The area is very fertile and much agriculture was imported back to Rome, as well as the more wild animals used in Colosseum games.
It was a beautiful day for a tour, but most of the days have been beautiful this past week. The first few days after we got here were rainy and cold, which is really uncommon in this time of the year, but it seems that the weather has settled back into the normality and the past week we've had sunshine and 50-60 degree weather every day!
Since it has been so nice we've been able to get out and explore the city a bit more! We generally take a taxi to the university and to the medina- the old city- but we walk to anywhere else we want to go in the city. The medina has a large souk- or market- in an area called Place el-Hedime- or Place of destruction. Aside from the food market where we are barraged by sights and smells both pleasant- fresh baked bread (hobs) and spices, and unpleasant- sheep and camel heads as well as other raw meats, the souk has many interesting shops. The most common are clothes: jeans, boots, shoes and crafts: rugs, ironwork, and jellabas. A jellaba is the traditional Moroccan clothing, and is still many times worn over more modern clothing. It is basically a hooded robe but can be embroidered or made with fine material so the range of style is quite broad. I hope to get one of my own soon, so I am eyeing the ones I pass to get an idea of what to look for!
We have also been able to participate in activities that the students and younger Moroccans do; cafes and leisurely walks around the Ville Nouelle. There are cafes and patisseries in abundance here so we have no trouble finding one we like. A few Moroccan students who knew the last group well took some of us to a juice cafe last night. There were more combinations of fruits that I thought possible and I had a hard time choosing. The juices here are made with milk and resemble somewhat a smoothie, without ice. I got pretty adventurous and tried an avacado and mango drink, although the pistachio and avacado caught my eye as well!
We also have met a few students at the university who show us around and introduce us more to the culture; a friend Jihane is coming over tomorrow to my apartment to do henna tattoos for some of us girls. I have begun to find my place with the other students on this trip and although it will not be the easiest at times I have found peace in knowing that I am where I am for a reason and I can't wait for that reason to become evident!
Please send your prayers as I begin my second week of school and things inevitably begin to take their toll! Love to all!